The Red Clay Strays Know Not Everyone Believes in God. They’re Still Going to Sing About Him
For The Red Clay Strays, faith has never been something they felt the need to hide.
The Mobile, Alabama, band has built much of its identity around Southern rock, country, soul and gospel, with songs that openly reference God, redemption and the struggles that have shaped their lives. At the same time, frontman Brandon Coleman understands that not everyone who buys a ticket to a Red Clay Strays concert shares those beliefs.
That distinction came into focus during a recent stop in Macon, Georgia, when Coleman took a moment to address the crowd.
He wanted fans to know something simple: the band isn’t there to convert anyone. They’re there to make music.
Faith is part of the Red Clay Strays, even if they don’t call themselves a Christian band
The Red Clay Strays are made up of Brandon Coleman, Drew Nix, Zach Rishel, Andrew Bishop, John Hall and Sevans Henderson.
Coleman handles lead vocals and guitar, while Nix contributes electric guitar, vocals and harmonica. Rishel plays electric guitar, Bishop plays bass, Hall is on drums and Henderson handles keyboards. Henderson joined the band on the road in February 2024 after meeting the group while touring with Elle King in 2023.
Formed in Mobile in 2016, the group spent years working its way through the Gulf Coast music scene before breaking through to a much larger audience. Their 2022 debut album, Moment of Truth, produced the song “Wondering Why,” which later went viral on TikTok and helped push the band onto the national stage.
Their music has never fit neatly into one category. Southern rock, country, Americana, soul and gospel all find their way into the band’s sound.
Faith has also been a consistent thread.
When Made by These Moments arrived in 2024, Coleman and Drew Nix spoke openly about how their belief in God had influenced both the band’s music and its journey. Coleman has nevertheless made a point of saying that the Red Clay Strays are not a Christian band. They are a band made up of Christians.
That difference matters to Coleman.
The band’s latest album, Grateful, released June 5, 2026, continues that approach. The 11-song record includes spiritually focused tracks such as “Demons In Your Choir” and “Revival,” while also moving through Southern rock, soul and other roots-oriented sounds.
Brandon Coleman has a message for fans who don’t believe
During the band’s recent performance in Macon, Coleman addressed something he has apparently felt the need to explain at some shows.
He acknowledged that the Red Clay Strays know not everyone in the audience believes in God.
Coleman said the band isn’t interested in presenting itself as a group of spiritual authorities. They aren’t trying to become preachers or tell people what they should believe.
Instead, they’re musicians who happen to have a strong faith, and that faith naturally makes its way into their art.
His message to nonreligious fans was particularly straightforward: thank you for being there and listening.
The band doesn’t expect everyone in the room to share its beliefs. Coleman made clear that people are welcome at their shows regardless of where they stand spiritually.
He also emphasized that the members of the Red Clay Strays are far from perfect. They aren’t claiming to have all the answers. They make music, and God happens to be a major part of their lives and, consequently, a major part of their music.
That approach is consistent with what Coleman has said about the band’s identity before.
When Made by These Moments was released in 2024, the band’s faith was already impossible to miss, but Coleman resisted putting the group into a strictly Christian-music category. Their songs can move from gospel-influenced passages to Southern rock, blues and country without fitting comfortably inside one genre.
The faith behind the music was tested long before the big stages
The band’s beliefs also grew out of difficult years rather than simply becoming a theme for its records.
The Red Clay Strays were working to keep their musical ambitions alive when the COVID-19 pandemic brought touring to a halt. Some members turned to driving for Uber to make ends meet while they waited for the opportunity to return to music.
Those years tested the band in ways that went well beyond songwriting and performing.
Still, they kept moving forward. They held onto their belief in one another, their vision for the band and their faith in God.
That history helps explain why songs about faith carry such weight in the Red Clay Strays’ catalog.
Coleman has previously described the band’s albums as different stages of that journey. Moment of Truth dealt with having faith during dark periods. Made by These Moments reflected on what those experiences had produced. By the time they reached Grateful, the focus had shifted toward appreciation for having made it through.
“God Does” captures that message
One of the clearest examples of the band’s faith-driven songwriting is “God Does,” from Made by These Moments.
Released July 26, 2024, the song was written by Drew Nix and features vocals from Coleman.
It’s also the kind of song that can easily feel at home in a church setting, which makes it a natural fit for the message Coleman was delivering to the crowd in Macon.
The song doesn’t represent a sudden change in direction for the Red Clay Strays. Faith has been part of their story from the beginning. Their catalog includes earlier songs with explicitly religious themes, and that thread has continued through each of their three studio albums.
With Grateful, the band has taken that spiritual side even further. The album was produced by Dave Cobb, who also produced Made by These Moments, and its 11 tracks blend gospel and soul with the band’s Southern rock foundation.
For the Red Clay Strays, singing about God doesn’t require every listener to believe the same thing.
It simply means they’re writing about something that matters deeply to them.
The Red Clay Strays are taking Grateful on the road
The timing of Coleman’s comments comes as the band continues its extensive 2026 Grateful Tour.
The tour is among the biggest live runs the Mobile group has undertaken, with major arena dates and a series of high-profile supporting acts. The band’s announced 2026 schedule includes stops across the Southeast in October and November.
2026 Grateful Tour dates
October 14 — Orlando, FL — Kia Center
With The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 15 — Savannah, GA — Enmarket Arena
With The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 17 — Charleston, SC — Credit One Stadium
With The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 18 — Greenville, SC — Bon Secours Wellness Arena
With The Revivalist & Haley Reinhart
October 22 — Nashville, TN — Bridgestone Arena
With Brent Cobb & Sierra Ferrell
October 23 — Nashville, TN — Bridgestone Arena
With Brent Cobb & Sierra Ferrell
October 28 — Knoxville, TN — Food City Center
With Wyatt Flores & Brent Cobb
October 31 — Birmingham, AL — Legacy Arena at the BJCC
With Shane Smith & the Saints & Brent Cobb
November 5 — Baton Rouge, LA — Raising Cane’s River Center
With Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 6 — Bossier City, LA — Brookshire Grocery Arena
With Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 8 — Jonesboro, AR — First National Bank Arena
With Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
November 13 — Atlanta, GA — State Farm Arena
With Travis Tritt & Brent Cobb
The tour also includes a December 5 performance at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, according to the venue’s current listing.
They don’t need everyone to believe
The Red Clay Strays have spent years figuring out who they are as a band.
They came out of Mobile, built an audience through years of live performances, survived the uncertainty of the pandemic, broke through with “Wondering Why,” and eventually moved from small Gulf Coast stages to major venues across the country.
Faith has been part of that story throughout.
So has the band’s willingness to make music that crosses boundaries. Grateful continues that tradition, bringing gospel and spiritual themes into a record that still leaves room for country, soul and Southern rock.
Coleman’s message in Macon fits naturally within that history.
The Red Clay Strays aren’t asking every fan to believe what they believe. They simply aren’t going to stop singing about what they believe themselves.
And for a band that has made faith such a central part of its journey, that’s likely to remain a defining part of the music.
